BEAVER — Attorney General Dave Sunday, in collaboration with Beaver County leaders, announced a launch of the Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative (LETI), with the program to include a behavioral health component, expanding the pool of potential participants.

Beaver becomes the 35th county to launch LETI, a collaborative program led by the Office of Attorney General in partnership with district attorney’s offices and other law enforcement to divert individuals struggling with substance use disorder or with behavioral health needs from potential criminal prosecution.

It is also the seventh county to launch LETI with the behavioral health services component, which will add another layer of individualized care, based on participants’ specific needs.

“Beaver County is making an important breakthrough by launching LETI and backing it with behavioral health support from the get-go.” Attorney General Sunday said. “We’ve seen what this strategy can accomplish: it supports families, breaks cycles, and increases community safety. As LETI grows, more people will have the opportunity to receive assistance and reach their potential.”

AG Sunday said partnering with Beaver County law enforcement agencies PA LETI will:

• Strengthen community efforts to redirect individuals struggling with substance use or behavioral health away from arrest or incarceration and toward community-based treatment and recovery services.
• Create more accessible pathways to treatment and case management by empowering law enforcement and prosecutors to make direct referrals to CMSU for substance use, behavioral health or both.
• Foster trust and collaboration between law enforcement, the District Attorney’s office and the communities they serve by offering help and resources rather than arrest and furtherance of prosecution when able. “The LETI program empowers law enforcement officers to be proactive in their communities by identifying those individuals who get trapped in the criminal system due to mental health and substance abuse issues,” Beaver County District Attorney Nathan Bible said. “Nobody knows and understands the members of their communities better than those who police them. The Beaver County District Attorney’s Office is excited about adding another tool for law enforcement officers to help combat these issues that plague our county.”

“Beaver County Behavioral Health is dedicated to connecting community members experiencing mental health and/or substance use disorders to treatment and various support services,” Beaver County Behavioral Health Administrator Lisa McCoy said. “By introducing a LETI program in the county, we can improve law enforcement’s ability to connect our behavioral health consumers to treatment, in addition to reducing consumer engagement with the criminal justice system. This initiative also presents a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of cross-system collaboration within our communities.”

Once the program is up and running, individuals can walk into the police station, probation office, sheriff’s department, or the local drug and alcohol authority and ask to be connected to drug and alcohol or behavioral health services. This program also empowers law enforcement to offer treatment to people suffering from addiction and will help stop the revolving door that exists for individuals who do not receive treatment.

LETI currently operates in Armstrong, Beaver, Berks, Bradford, Butler, Cameron, Carbon, Chester, Clearfield, Clinton, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Elk, Erie, Fayette, Indiana, Jefferson, Lebanon, Luzerne, Mifflin, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, Snyder, Somerset, Sullivan, Union, Wayne, Wyoming, and Northampton counties.

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